“Here we go.” Mil crossed her arms a scowl formed across her swollen lips.
Chase waited.
I licked my lips and tried to appear indifferent. “But if you guys start screwing each other now, I may have to shoot one or both of you. It’s not the time to play house, got it?”
“Play house,” Chase repeated in a deadpan voice as he dipped his free hand into his back pocket, most likely clenching a pair of brass knuckles.
“I know it’s your honeymoon,” I continued. “But this little scenario you’ve got going on with the whole hot and cold is going to have to wait until everyone’s safe. So Chase, keep it in your pants for once in your life, and Mil, stop trying to seduce the poor kid, alright? It’s like dangling a damn fry in front of a seagull.”
“Who’s a fry?” Tex asked, pulling the luggage cart with him.
“Mil.”
“Are we eating dinner or something? Because I have to admit—” Tex leaned against the cart. “—I’m freaking starving.” He eyed Chase and Mil. “Then again, I’m sure you both are too. All those extracurriculars really take it out of ya.”
Chase took off his sunglasses, his face twisting in irritation and annoyance, no smile. Nothing. He was pissed.
“Chase,” I said slowly. “You know I’m right. You’re the best I have. I need your focus to be on The Family. Your family. Then you can screw all you want, okay? Make a million babies, let her tie you up in scarves. Whatever shit you’re into, fine. But not now.”
Mil looked like she wanted to punch me in the face. Chase took a step forward, but she stopped him.
“Good talk.” I exhaled. “Chase, I’ll see you down in the bar in a half-hour, okay? We have business to discuss. Mil, you can go find the girls. They’re having dinner out by the pool.”
Nobody moved.
After a few seconds of tense silence where I was pretty sure Chase was trying to convince himself not to strangle me to death, Tex cleared his throat and pointed to the luggage. “You guys need help, then?”
“Yeah,” Chase croaked. “Thanks.”
We loaded them up and sent them on their way.
“Tell me,” Tex asked once we were walking back toward the bar. “Is your only goal to see how far you can push Chase before he kills you in your sleep?”
I laughed, the tension escaping through every chuckle that ran through my body. “Hell no. But Mil’s still the key in this entire scenario — we need her.”
“Dude, let Chase do his job.”
“Nah, I have a better plan.”
“Anger? Castration? Drowning?”
I sat down at the bar and grinned. “How good is Chase in situations when he’s told he can’t do something or he can’t have something?”
“Tortures himself until he—” Tex nodded. A slow smile suddenly appeared across his lips. I knew he’d eventually catch on to the brilliance of my plan. “You mean to dangle the carrot in front of the bunny until it dies from want.”
“And when it gives in…”
Tex smirked. “Rotten bastard. When it gives in, the damn carrot and bunny are so inseparable it would take death for them to part.”
“I’ll drink to that.”
Chapter Thirty
Chase
Nixon was damn lucky I’d packed my gun in my suitcase at the last minute, meaning it wasn’t easily accessible while he was harassing me in the street.
My fingers itched to punch something.
I hated that he was right.
Hated that the last thing I was focusing on was the fact that random people were after my wife, someone was stalking us, and Mil’s mom had just been murdered.
But Mil was wearing a V-neck tank top.
I had the attention span of a pubescent sixth grader. Regardless of where my eyes were supposed to be trained, they’d eventually gone right back to her chest and stayed until she caught me. Then I’d jerked my head away — solidifying the whole sixth-grader theory, only to get caught staring again.
“You want me to flash you and get it over with?” Mil asked once we reached our room. Unfortunately, I’d just taken a sip of water. I choked it down and pounded my chest.
“Hey, caveman?” Mil snickered. “You gonna make it?”
“Yeah,” I croaked. “Wrong lube.”
“Lube?”
“Tube!” I shouted. “Shit.”
Mil’s entire face was frozen in a mocking grin, hands on hips, which, of course, drew my eyes to her chest. Again.
“I gotta go meet Nixon.” I forced a smile and walked past her, grabbing the key card from the table on my way.
“Oh, and Chase,” Mil called.
I turned.
She lifted her shirt, revealing a lacey pink bra that I could have sworn spoke to me. It said, “Chase, stay. Chase, make love to me, Chase.”
“Chase,” Mil interrupted. “Have fun at your meeting.”
I must have looked like an idiot. My smile was so huge it actually hurt my face, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t sober up. It was like I was drunk — only a hundred times better. “Thanks.”
I half-walked half-staggered in a lust-filled dream all the way to the elevator.
The euphoric sensation lasted through the entire elevator ride.
And during my walk to the bar, flashes of pink invaded my senses making me drunk with lust.
And again as I took a seat, her face beckoned me, her body screamed. Damn it! I wanted to make her pay, hell I wanted to make us both suffer. The release alone would be my undoing.